About The Program

This is a full-time, one year Master’s in Science degree program administered through the School of Medicine and Dentistry at the University of Rochester.  It is for students in medicine, nursing and other healthcare disciplines, and students in humanities and social sciences.  The program starts at the end of August and ends in mid-May.

Program Highlights

• Identify and develop narrative skills and techniques essential to clinical practice.
• Using real cases, you will examine the principles of clinical ethics, with an emphasis on issues that arise in clinical practice. Specific topics include informed consent, organ transplantation and death and dying.
• Explore theories on treatment in different centuries and different perspectives in the humanities to see how the body has been conceptualized in Western culture and medicine, and the implications of these concepts in the 21st century for the patient, and for the scientists and clinicians who provide treatment and care.
• Focus on observational skills. Experiential sessions at the University's Memorial Art Museum and classroom discussions will emphasize key philosophical, historical, clinical, and cultural issues in Western medicine around "looking." Students will apply skills and concepts learned to contemporary issues in healthcare for patients, providers, and for the profession.
• Each student will arrange a supervised independent study to apply the knowledge and methods of a humanities discipline to a healthcare issue. 
• View Curriculum 

Program Alumni

Who Should Apply

This one year degree program fosters interdisciplinary collaborative teaching and learning. It is intended for students, trainees, professionals and scholars.

• Healthcare Disciplines (medicine, nursing, dentistry, social work, pastoral care, physician assistants, physical and occupational therapy, and allied health fields) who want to develop humanities-based knowledge and skills that can be applied to clinical practice

• Humanities, Arts and Social Science Disciplines (literature, history, philosophy and ethics, visual arts, anthropology, gender, cultural and religious studies, performing arts, etc.) who want to integrate aspects of medicine and patient care into their academic work and teaching
• Gap year or bridging year students

Admissions/Apply Now